Starla Shaffer, a Mohave Valley woman, was sentenced to nearly a decade in prison after pleading guilty to assaulting a child under her care, causing permanent and life-threatening injuries according to the U.S. Attorney's Office. On Wednesday, Shaffer received a 118-month prison term by U.S. District Judge Diane J. Humetewa; she is also subject to three years of supervised release post-incarceration.
The incidents that landed Shaffer behind bars took place between January and September of 2022 where she was found to have shaken and struck a three-year-old repeatedly, the abuse spanned the face, buttocks, chest, and back of the victim – what led to an investigation by the FBI Phoenix Division's Lake Havasu office in collaboration with the Fort Mojave Police Department, both the perpetrator and the minor child are members of the Fort Mojave Indian Tribe, this fact has not lost its resonance amid the sentencing outcomes, as reported by the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Christina J. Reid-Moore of the District of Arizona was in charge of the prosecution, and after the trial, she emphasized the importance of adequately addressing crimes against children, especially those that result in severe and possibly lifelong consequences, as per the U.S. Attorney's Office.
The details of the case, including the cruelty of the attacks and the resulting injuries to the child, were part of a grim narrative of abuse—the case number being CR-24-08052-PCT-DJH, marked a legal conclusion to an ordeal that brings little in terms of solace yet stands as a testament to the consequence that await the infliction of harm upon the defenseless, sentencing details were widely reported following a press release issued on June 26th, 2025, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office website.
